William W. Belknap

Belknap was President Grant’s fourth Secretary of War. He was accused of committing improprieties in administering government contracts. During the pendency of the House investigation, Belknap resigned his office on March 2, 1876. However, the Committee on the Judiciary proceeded to draft articles of impeachment, which were approved by the full House in April 1876. Belknap was acquitted by the Senate in August 1876.

Resources

The following materials link to fuller bibliographic information in the Library of Congress Online Catalog. Links to additional online content are provided when available.

Journal of the House of Representatives of the United States
Call Number: KF46. A22
Published/Created: 1789-
44th Cong., 1st Sess. (1876) - The vote of impeachment is located on page 496. The proceedings approving the articles of impeachment are on pages 696-703 (available at HathiTrust External).
Congressional Record
Call Number: KF35
Published/Created: 1874-
4 Cong. Rec. (1876) - The trial proceedings are published in part 7, which also includes excerpts from the House’s proceedings and the articles of impeachment approved by the House (available at govinfo).
Proceedings of the Senate Sitting for the Trial of William W. Belknap by U.S. Senate
Call Number: KF5091.B45 B45 1876
Published/Created: 1876
Same materials as in the Congressional Record, above, and is more user-friendly. This source is easier to use than the Congressional Record.
United States Congressional Serial Set
Call Number: KF12 .U5
Published/Created: 1817-
- Impeachment of William W. Belknap, H.R. Rep. No. 44-345 (1876) - Reported articles of impeachment from the Committee on the Judiciary are found in volume 1709 (available at HathiTrust External).
- Report of the House Managers on the Impeachment of W. W. Belknap, Late Secretary of War, H.R. Rep. No. 44-791 (1876) - A post-trial justification of the impeachment and trial of Belknap. Found in volume 1713.

Federal Impeachment

William W. Belknap

Resources